English translation of the original Korean report. Images and source documents may contain Korean text.

Picket protest at groundbreaking ceremony for KRW 6 trillion advanced semiconductor plant… Union highlights DS-DX performance bonus gap and calls for direct talks with Chairman Lee Jae-yong

As President Lee Jae Myung and Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong attended the groundbreaking ceremony for an advanced high-bandwidth memory (HBM) packaging plant at Samsung Electronics’ Onyang facility in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, on the 12th, members of the Samsung Electronics Donghaeng Union staged a picket protest near the venue, alleging that approximately 50,000 employees in the Device eXperience (DX) Division had been excluded from bargaining.

According to the Donghaeng Union (Chairman Son Yong-ho) on the 12th, union members held placards in front of police barricades bearing messages including ‘Chairman Lee Jae-yong, please talk to us’ and ‘One chairman of another union is bypassing 50,000 DX employees in bargaining.’

In his welcoming remarks at the groundbreaking ceremony that day, Chairman Lee said the Onyang facility, previously focused on semiconductor assembly and testing, would be transformed into an advanced HBM production hub. Samsung Electronics plans to invest KRW 6 trillion in constructing the new plant and pursue approximately KRW 40 trillion in advanced equipment investment in the future.

The Donghaeng Union alleged that during this year’s wage negotiations, the bargaining representative union, centered on the semiconductor Device Solutions (DS) Division, led the negotiations without adequately reflecting the demands of DX employees.

■ DX Receives KRW 6 Million in Treasury Shares… DS Special Performance Bonuses Projected at Up to KRW 750 Million

In May, Samsung Electronics management and labor agreed to introduce a special management performance bonus funded by 10.5% of the DS Division’s business performance, while agreeing to provide employees in the DX Division with treasury shares worth KRW 6 million per person as part of a mutual cooperation initiative.

In July, Samsung Electronics decided to dispose of approximately KRW 344.5 billion worth of treasury shares to provide 49,345 employees in the DX Division and CSS Business Team with 22 treasury shares each and cash equivalent to 0.65 of a share.

The slogan displayed by the Donghaeng Union at the protest, ‘Performance bonuses of 0 won vs. 1 billion won at the same company,’ was an expression criticizing compensation disparities between business divisions, rather than figures directly representing actual amounts paid.

The estimated special management performance bonus for the DS Division, disclosed in October, was approximately KRW 750 million before tax for an employee in the Memory Business earning an annual salary in the low KRW 80 million range. Actual payment is scheduled for late March or early April next year.

The Donghaeng Union demanded an official apology for the exclusion of the DX Division during the 2026 wage negotiations, the introduction of meaningful cash-based measures to boost employee morale, and the establishment of a fair joint bargaining framework for 2027.

Son Yong-ho, chairman of the Donghaeng Union, said, ‘What we are asking of Chairman Lee Jae-yong is not special treatment but responsible dialogue,’ adding that the union would continue its on-site protest activities until the company presented substantive solutions.